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In the early 1970s, Jack Kirby, the visual architect of the Marvel universe, took his talents to rival DC, where he unleashed the most ambitious, imaginative epic that American comics had ever seen: the saga of the New Gods. DC’s management pulled the plug on the project after just over a year, but the powerful ideas that Kirby sketched out half a century ago captured the imagination of generations of creators and now sit at the center of DC’s mythology. And of course the themes of the New Gods – the conflict between freedom and totalitarian control, the unforeseen consequences of new technology, the role of propaganda in shaping public support for fascist ideology, and the impact of all-out war on civilian populations – resonate at least as much today as they did in the era of Nixon and Vietnam.
The latest inheritor of this grand tradition is Ram V, an exciting and imaginative creator in his own right, just off a highly regarded stint on Batman in Detective Comics. He takes the reins on a new run of The New Gods due out in December, and brings a fresh perspective to the material.
“Many of the story elements come from my reading of Hindu mythology,” said Ram V, who was born and raised in Mumbai. “The original work takes a lot from Greco-Roman mythology; the gods are modeled on archetypes. The Hindu gods that I grew up with are more nuanced and complex, often making silly mistakes because they are powerful, not because they are perfect. Their slightest whim has dramatic consequences.”
Ram V’s story picks up after the events of DC All In, which saw the demise of the New God Darkseid, the “big bad” in Kirby’s cosmology who became a central character in the DC Universe. With the universe out of balance, the scattered forces of good and evil get word of the birth of a new deity on Earth. Is it a threat? A potential weapon? “This leads to a cosmic arms race with multiple parties interested in either controlling or getting rid of this new New God,” said Ram V.
The absence of Darkseid, the central figure in the New Gods’ typical story arc and one of comics’ all-time great villains, creates both a challenge and an opportunity. In Kirby’s original vision, Darkseid represented the totalitarian desire for control over all aspects of existence. His minions Granny Goodness, Desaad and Glorious Godfrey embodied the power of indoctrination, cruelty and propaganda in furtherance of the totalitarian project. The futuristic technology of Darkseid’s planet Apokalips, including bioengineering, artificial intelligence, all-powerful mobile devices and sentient transportation vehicles, seduced the public with their almost magical capabilities, but ultimately became tools of control. For Kirby, a Jewish-American World War II veteran and co-creator of Captain America (he drew the iconic cover of Cap punching Hitler), the struggle against fascism was immediate and personal, and he understood exactly what we were up against.
Ram V believes the new post-Darkseid universe opens up even more terrifying possibilities. “The conflict [between freedom and fascism] has, sadly, evolved beyond what we had considered in the 1940s,” he said. “There are greater threats that we are encountering in the book, the advent of a nihilistic villain who believes no ideology matters. The only thing that matters is to accelerate the march of time forward to a point where morals, standing for something, matters less than change itself. All they want to do is hit the reset button to accelerate the demise of this part of the cosmos.”
Like Kirby before him, Ram V sees the subtext of conflict with The New Gods as highly relevant to the current state of the world. “I genuinely think we’re at a time where accelerationists control more of our society than we think they do, and this idea of ideological battles seems almost dwarfed against the advent of these corporations, who seem to deny any single individual effort to stem the tide.”
Artist Evan Cagle complements Ram V’s thoughtful updating of the premise by reimagining the gleaming, larger-than-life cosmos of the New Gods in a careful, detailed, contemporary style. The work is beautifully colored by Francesco Segala.
“Out of all the collaborators I’ve worked with, Evan has the ability to depict scale on a comic book page combined with great nuanced character acting and expression,” said Ram V. “Evan shares a lot with people that came after Kirby and contributed hugely to the success of the comic book medium. There’s some Moebius in there, even some manga style after Otomo. So it feels like an artist drawing in 2024, not necessarily trying to draw like the 1970s.”
Ram V says the initial plans for the book include a 12-issue arc to kick things off, but that he has more than three years of continuity sketched out. “This is very much going to be a core title for the DC Absolute Universe. The New Gods are the only characters present in both universes, and so they are going to become pivotal in any story where these two universes interact. We’ll see that more and more as the story progresses.”
Taking the reins on a title that began life as comics’ greatest creator’s greatest creation, and has showcased top work by the likes of John Byrne, Walt Simonson and Grant Morrison in its 50+ year history, is a tall order. Early indications are that Ram V and Evan Cagle are up to the task.
“}]] Writer Ram V and artist Evan Cagle bring a fresh perspective and relevance to one of comics’ most visionary properties. Read More